Disposable chafing dish with handles and chafing dish handles configured therfore

ABSTRACT

A disposable chafing dish with handles allows a cost effective safe, efficient, and professional-appearing exchange and serving of food, keeping the servers hands away from the outer edge of the chafing dish where hot steam rises from the water pan. The chafing dish handles of the present invention are formed as part of a closed loop frame. The frame consists of rail members that are configured to align with and to be positioned beneath the chafing dish ledge of disposable chafing dish and which edges can be rolled around portions of the rail members. The rail members form a rectangular, depending on the shape of the chafing dish, structure. Handle members extend from the rail members on opposed sides of the frame and extend in a manner that does not prevent the lid placement or the nesting of chafing dishes in storage.

The present application is a divisional of U.S. patent application Ser.No. 13/735,846 entitled “Quick Attaching Chafing Dish Handle Configuredfor Safe Chafing Dish Placement and Removal and for Nesting Chafing DishStorage”, which published as publication 2013-0186903 and which issuedas U.S. Pat. No. 8,899,438 wherein this publication and patent areincorporated herein by reference. U.S. patent application Ser. No.13/735,846 is a continuation in part of international patent applicationPCT/US2011/042927 filed Jul. 5, 2011 that published as publicationnumber 2012-006267 on Jan. 12, 2012, which publication is incorporatedherein by reference. International patent application PCT/US2011/042927claims priority of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No.61/361,478 entitled “Quick Attaching Chafing Dish Handle Configured forSafe Chafing Dish Placement and Removal and for Nesting Chafing DishStorage” filed Jul. 5, 2010.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The invention relates to the field of catering apparatuses, and inparticular to an improved disposable chafing dish with handles andhandles therefore to assist in the exchange of hot chafing dishes and inthe storage of chafing dishes when not in use.

2. Background Information

Chafing dishes, which are also referred to as food pans, steam tables,chafing pans, and buffet pans (collectively referred to herein aschafing dishes), are widely used for buffet-type food service, servingvarious kinds of hot and cold foods. Such chafing dishes, when servinghot foods, typically include a supporting water pan supported by an openframe bracing structure. One or more heat sources, such as stenoburners, are placed below the water pan to heat the water in the pan. Achafing dish is supported by the water pan, typically above the level ofthe water. A lid is often provided to cover the chafing dish. Typically,both the water pan and the chafing dish will include an outwardlyextending peripheral rim at an upper portion thereof. The peripheral rimof the water pan engages the open frame bracing structure to support thewater pan. In a similar fashion, the peripheral rim of the chafing dishengages the peripheral rim of the water pan to support the chafing dish.

Representative examples of this construction are found in U.S. Pat. Nos.5,045,672, 5,347,979 and 5,517,903 and 5,676,276. It is also possiblewith certain chafing dishes to utilize the chafing dishes and the openframe bracing structure without the intervening water pan, such as forfood dishes served and maintained at room temperature. In thisconfiguration, the chafing dish may be supported directly of the openframe bracing structure. For cold or chilled dishes the water pan can beused to support ice to cool the chafing dish without contacting the food

The chafing dishes must be removed from the assembly periodically forvarious reasons. For instance, chafing dishes must be removed andreplaced to replenish the food in the chafing dish assembly, and must beremoved to clean the chafing dishes. Chafing dishes are sometimesdescribed as being designed or configured to provide a close or tightseal between the chafing dish and the water pan so that the steam orcold air below the chafing dish will not escape around the edges of thechafing dish, however in practice no such seal is provided in mostapplications as ordinary wear and tear will provide variations in asurface such that no tight metal to metal seal is practical. Evenwithout a tight “seal” per se in practice it is advantageous that thechafing dishes sit or seat evenly within the supporting structure andthis engagement can be referenced as a seal within the meaning of thisapplication.

The conventional prior art chafing dishes are typically constructed witha peripheral rim being either a planar flange having a down-turned outeredge or a planar ledge having an outwardly extending portion which restson and provides an engagement surface for the water pan in which thechafing dish is placed. It is often difficult to remove such chafingdishes from the assembly.

In order to remove the chafing dishes, the edge of the chafing dish,which provides the engagement or seal with the water pan, must somehowbe lifted from the water pan, by wedging a finger, utensil or other toolunder the sealing rim. Such a procedure is difficult and can bedangerous since the chafing dish assembly may have a hot upper surfaceand/or hot escaping steam can burn the hand or finger of the personremoving the chafing dish.

Commonly, persons removing the chafing dish may unwisely use somethingelse, other than a pot holder, such as an apron that he or she iswearing to remove the chafing dish. This could result in the unevenhandling of the chafing dish causing spills and/or burns to the foodhandler and/or patrons standing nearby while the transfer of hot food istaking place. Furthermore, aprons mistakenly being caught underneath ofthe chafing dish could quite possibly cause the whole chafing dishassembly to be pulled over as the worker leaves the area.

Attempts have been made to address this problem in the prior art. Forexample, U.S. Pat. No. 5,676,276 discloses a chafing dish with a notchin the sealing flange to provide a space between the chafing dish andthe water pan into which serving utensils can be inserted to lift thechafing dish for easy grasping of the edge of the chafing dish. Thissolution still requires and encourages the inappropriate use of servingutensils and the like to pry the chafing dish upwards and unevenlyhandle the chafing dish.

Permanently attached handles have been used in other nested cookwaresuch as draining baskets or strainers as shown in U.S. Pat. Nos.2,588,614 and 4,106,486. U.S. Pat. No. 925,781 discloses a steamerarrangement with integral handles to facilitate handling. U.S. Pat. No.6,705,210 provides a very effective attached handle solution asdescribed in greater detail below, and this design, in practice, mayrepresent a preferable solution for roll top chafing dishes as they areknown in the art. U.S. Pat. No. 7,611,178 provides a more complex panlifting implement. U.S. Pat. No. 6,721,996 provides another chafing dishhandle solution.

U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,112,948 and 3,179,287 disclose special attachablechafing dish handles. The attachment of the handles to the chafingdishes in these designs encounter the same problems associated withmoving the chafing dishes without the handles. These handles would alsointerfere with the sealing of the chafing dish and the water pan and theplacement of the lid if the handles were left attached to the chafingdish. Finally, these handles represent another tool which the operatormust store separately while the chafing dish assembly is being used,washed or stored. U.S. Pat. No. 6,092,670 discloses separable handlesfor manipulating a steam pan.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,511,467 discloses a chafing dish handling frame formedfrom cylindrical steel of a shape and size for surrounding a chafingdish under its lateral flange. The frame includes two handles positionedso as not to interfere with proper seating of the pan in the receptaclehole in the steam table. One embodiment of the pan handling deviceincludes lid/pan clamps for securing the pan handling device to a steamtable pan as well as for securing a pan lid to a pan such as when foodis to be stored in a pan. This solution does not adequately address panstorage or frame attachment.

The strainers have been designed with a peripheral supporting ledge forsupporting the strainer within another cooking vessel, typicallycontaining water or oil. Due to the perforated nature of a strainer, theledge does not form a seal with the underlying cookware. Consequently,removing a strainer from the cookware does not result in a sudden escapeof steam as in chafing dish removal. Furthermore, such strainers are notcommonly used for food presentation and service.

The conventional prior art chafing dishes are typically stored nestedone inside of the other. Space considerations in restaurant environmentscan often be quite critical such that the compact storage of chafingdishes through nesting is deemed essential in certain environments, evenif such nesting can make the dishes difficult to remove. Consequentlyany chafing dish handling development that significantly alters thenesting storage arrangement will severely limit their commercialapplicability. The applicant's prior chafing dish handling solution isfound in U.S. Pat. No. 6,705,210 (the '210 patent) and this solutionaddresses much of the prior art problems and it further avoids theproblem of inseparable nesting chafing dishes by creating what is calleda “fanned” nested arrangement of pans. However, this solution, whichadmittedly does require greater height in pan storage, has been lesswidely implemented in environments where storage space is deemed themost critical. A safety device such as in the '210 patent, is of littlepractical use if it is not actually implemented in practice. Thedisclosure of the '210 patent is incorporated herein by reference.

All of the above identified patents are incorporated herein by referenceas they clearly supply information regarding the conventionalconstruction of chafing dish stands and pans and the like as well asidentifying the shortcomings of the state of the art. As evidenced inthis prior art there is a need for additional chafing pan handlesolutions which provide, for example, most of the advantages of the '210patent while still allowing for nesting of the chafing pans. Thus thereis a need for a chafing dish which can easily be removed from a waterpan or open frame bracing structure which provides a seal between thechafing dish and the water pan and allows a lid to be placed on top.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The chafing dish and associated handles according to the presentinvention solves the difficulties inherent in prior art chafing dishesby providing a chafing dish which can easily be removed from a chafingdish assembly which provides a seal between the chafing dish and thewater pan and allows a lid to be placed on top. The chafing dish of thepresent invention allows a safe, efficient, and professional-appearingexchange and serving of food, keeping the servers hands away from theouter edge of the chafing dish where hot steam rises from the water pan.

The chafing dishes and associated handles according to one embodiment ofthe present invention may have a generally rectangular configurationwhich includes a solid bottom panel and four solid walls extendingupwardly there from. The four walls may include first and second endwalls and first and second side walls. The end walls are joined to theside walls at curved corners thereof, and define a generally rectangulartop opening. A top sealing flange extends outwardly from the four wallsaround the entire periphery of the walls. The sealing flange has acontinuous planar lower surface so that when the chafing dish is placedin a water pan, the continuous planar lower surface is in intimatecontact with the upper surface of the water pan around the periphery ofthe water pan. Thus, the chafing dish is in sealing engagement with thewater pan when the chafing dish is placed therein.

The key component of the present invention is the provision of handlesfor the chafing dish. The chafing dish handles of the present inventionare formed as part of a closed loop frame. The frame consists of railmembers that are configured to align with and to be positioned beneaththe chafing dish ledge. The rail members form a rectangular, dependingon the shape of the chafing dish, structure. Handle members extend fromthe rail members on opposed sides of the frame and extend in a mannerthat does not effect the lid placement or the nesting of chafing dishesin storage.

Each handle includes an opening to receive the hands of the user toeasily grip the chafing dish and remove the chafing dish from the waterpan or the open frame bracing structure. The handles extend in a mannerallowing a lid to be placed on top, and may provide for securing of thelid in certain embodiments. Handles are placed to keep handssufficiently away from dangerous steam that rises from the water panwhen removing the chafing dish from the water pan. Thus the handles onthe chafing dishes of the present invention allow a safe, efficient andprofessional-appearing exchange and serving of food.

The frame additionally includes a frame attachment member to secure theframe and associated handles to the chafing dish. The frame attachmentmember may be in the form of a notch or groove in the elements formingthe frame into which the outer edge of the ledge of the chafing dish canbe received. A support bar may be positioned above the groove to enhancethe ledge engaging structure. In these embodiments the notch and thesupport bar can act to engage and secure the lid which will help keepthe lid in position in transport. An alternative frame attachment memberis forming recessed lengths of the rail members that are selectivelyreceived in grooves formed in the chafing dish immediately below thedish ledge.

Further objects and advantages of the present invention will becomeapparent from a consideration of the drawings and ensuing description inwhich like reference numerals represent like elements throughout. It isan object of the present invention to address the deficiencies of theprior art discussed above and to do so in an efficient, cost effectivemanner.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 A is a perspective view of a chafing dish with a quick attachingchafing dish handle in accordance with one embodiment of the presentinvention, wherein the chafing dish is shown as transparent for clarity;

FIG. 1 B is a perspective view of a chafing dish with a quick attachingchafing dish handle in accordance with another embodiment of the presentinvention, wherein the chafing dish is shown as transparent for clarity;

FIG. 2 A is a perspective view of the quick attaching chafing dishhandle of FIG. 1A;

FIG. 2 B is a perspective view of the quick attaching chafing dishhandle of FIG. 1B;

FIG. 3 A is an enlarged side elevation view of the quick attachingchafing dish handle attachment to the chafing dish of the handle of inFIG. 1A;

FIG. 3 B is an enlarged side elevation view of the quick attachingchafing dish handle attachment to the chafing dish of the handle of FIG.1B;

FIG. 3 C is an enlarged side elevation view of a quick attaching chafingdish handle attachment to the chafing dish of another modifiedembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a side elevation view of a chafing dish with a quick attachingchafing dish handle in accordance with another embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 5 is a side elevation view of the chafing dish of FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the chafing dish handle of FIG. 4;

FIG. 7A is a perspective view of a chafing dish handle according to adifferent embodiment of the invention wherein the handle is designed forattachment to a disposable aluminum chafing dish;

FIG. 7B is a top perspective view of the chafing dish handle of FIG. 7Aattached to a disposable aluminum chafing dish;

FIG. 7C is a bottom perspective view of the chafing dish handle of FIG.7A attached to a disposable aluminum chafing dish;

FIG. 8A is a top perspective view of a chafing dish handle-supportingframe according to a different embodiment of the invention wherein thehandle is designed as a frame to support an associated chafing dish;

FIG. 8B is an enlarged rear perspective view of the chafing dishhandle-supporting frame according to FIG. 8A; and

FIG. 8C is an enlarged rear perspective view of the chafing dishhandle-supporting frame according to FIG. 8A.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

In summary, the present invention relates to a chafing dish 10 andassociated handles 22 configured to provide a safe exchange and servingof food by keeping the servers hands away from the outer edge 12 (alsocalled the sealing flange or ledge) of the chafing dish 10 where hotsteam rises from the water pan. The chafing dish 10 has a bottom paneland side walls extending upwardly there from defining a top opening, atop sealing flange ledge 12 extends outwardly from the side walls aroundthe entire periphery of the walls. The present invention also includes aclosed loop frame 20 including rail members that are configured to alignwith and to be positioned beneath the chafing dish ledge 12, andincluding handle members 22 extending from the rail members on opposedsides of the frame 20 and configured to extend in a manner that does noteffect the lid placement or the nesting of chafing dishes 10 in storage,the frame 20 additionally includes a frame attachment member 25 tosecure the frame 20 and associated handles 22 to the chafing dish 10.

Chafing dish 10 is best shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B and has a generallyrectangular planar bottom panel having the two long side walls and thetwo short side walls (end walls) extending upward there from, and acontinuous top ledge 12. Side walls are joined to and merged with bottompanel at curved corners. The side walls define a top opening andterminate in the top ledge 12. The top ledge 12 extends outwardly fromside walls around the entire periphery thereof and has a continuousplanar lower surface so that when chafing dish 10 is placed in a waterpan of a chafing dish assembly, the top ledge 12 will be in intimate,uninterrupted contact with an upper surface of the water pan. Thus,chafing dish 10 will be in sealing engagement with the water pan when itis located therein. The chafing dish assembly will additionally includethe open frame bracing structure and the burners as known in the art.

The top opening is generally rectangular in shape with the exception ofthe curved corners. Chafing dish 10 preferably has two handles 22located at first and second opposing ends or sidewalls of the dish 10.

The chafing dish handles 22 of the present invention are formed as partof a closed loop frame 20. The frame 20 consists of rail members thatare configured to align with and to be positioned beneath the chafingdish ledge 12 as shown. The rail members form a rectangular, dependingon the shape of the chafing dish, structure. Handle members 22 extendfrom the rail members on opposed sides of the frame 20 and extend in amanner that does not effect the lid placement or the nesting of chafingdishes 10 in storage. They may be angled up as shown in FIG. 4 relativeto the chafing dish to a degree that does not interfere with stackingand may make grasping easier, alternatively they can extend essentiallystraight as shown in FIGS. 1A and B. The frame 20 may easily be formedfrom round metal stock, such as ⅛-¼ inch stainless steel rods. Roundrods for the frame can provide excellent tactile form for the handleelements 22 discussed below while a rectangular or square shape mayengage the ledge 12 of the chafing dishes 10 more evenly.

The frame 20 additionally includes a frame attachment member 24 tosecure the frame 20 and associated handles 22 to the chafing dish 10.The frame attachment member 24 may be in the form of a notch or groovein the frame elements forming the frame 20 into which the outer edge ofthe ledge 12 of the chafing dish 10 can be received as shown in FIGS. 3Aand 3B. In an alternative embodiment shown in FIGS. 1B, 2B and 3B asupport bar 25 may be positioned above the groove to enhance the ledgeengaging structure of member 24. It should be apparent in theembodiments shown in FIGS. 1B, 2B and 3B that the groove forming theattachment member 24 can be formed by adding material to the structuresuch as support bar 25, which embodiment is shown in FIG. 3C. FIG. 3Cillustrates member 24′ as essentially the space or notch beneath a roundsupport bar 25 and the frame 20. In all these embodiments the member 24and the support bar 25 can act to engage and secure the lid 13 whichwill help keep the lid in position in transport. The “lid lock” aspectis illustrated in FIG. 3C and will provide some advantages to those thatare transporting the chafing dishes in vehicles as well as minimizingthe loss of a lid during manual movement (e.g., if the server stumblesthe lid 13 engagement with member 24 as shown in FIG. 3C lessens thelikelihood of loss of the lid and chafing dish contents).

An alternative frame attachment member 24 is shown in FIGS. 4-6 whichcomprises forming recessed lengths shown at 28 of the rail members thatare selectively received in grooves 14 formed in the chafing dish 10immediately below the dish ledge 12. This alternative attachment is alsoa snap fit type attachment however it requires a matching dish 10. It isan advantage of the embodiments of FIGS. 1-3 that the frames 10 of theearlier designs can be easily used with older or non-specialized dishes10

The frame attaching members 24 will only be in use supporting the frame20 when the dish 10 is not in the associated dish support frame/waterpan or not being carried by handles 22. When the dish 10 and frame 20are in the support frame assembly with the water pan, the frame 20 isacting mainly like a gasket between the ledge 12 and the water pan andso no separate attachment or holding mechanism is needed. Further, whilethe user is carrying the dish 10 through use of the handles 22 the frame20 is being held by the user and is supporting the dish 10 throughengagement with the ledge 12. The full support around substantially theentire ledge 12 provides a secure hold on the dish 10. Thus the frameattaching member 24 is important and in use when the dish 10 is not inthe associated support frame/water pan and not being carried, such as instorage, or in the oven, or in prep stations in the kitchen. Yet inthese situations the attaching structure formed by the frame attachingmembers 24 is critical to ensure use of the handles 22.

For moving the dish 10 the users hands are placed on handles 22 to liftthe chafing dish 10 out from a water pan instead of on the ledge of thechafing dish as with use of prior art chafing dishes, thereby keepingthe hands clear of dangerous rising steam. Prior art chafing dishes arefrequently stacked, or nested for storage. The handles 22 of the chafingdishes 10 provide storage in which dish nesting is not interfered with.The handles 22 would also allow for hanging storage of the chafingdishes 10 and do not interfere with stacking of chafing dishes asdiscussed. The handles 22 of the invention may also provide someassistance in separating nested dishes 10 as prior art dishes are oftenstacked when hot and wet and become difficult to separate when they dryand cool. The frame 20 can provide a spacer member between nested dishes10 that will act to prevent or at least minimize the “locking” of twonested dishes 10 together.

The handles 22 may be coated with an insulating grip-able, oven-safematerial to further improve the function. The shape can be designed tomore ergonomically fit the user's hands. FIG. 4 suggests an upwardextending angle for the handles 22 relative to the frame 20; however aparallel orientation to the frame 20 is also anticipated. The handles 22can be angled as shown, but should not significantly increase theoverall height, if at all, of the dish 10 when attached. If the angle istoo great (such as greater than about forty five degrees fromhorizontal) there is a risk that the combined assembly will no longerfit in all locations within an establishment's oven. Oven space incertain establishments is critical and limiting a dishes use to onlyselected racks is not helpful and could minimize the use of the frame 20and thus minimize the safety advantages provided.

The frame 20 of the dish 10 is easily separated from the chafing dish 10allowing a handful of frames 20 to be utilized with a large number ofdishes 10, in the event a user did not want to invest in separate frames20 for each dish 10. This design also allows for users to easilyretrofit their existing dishes through application of frames 20 withhandles 22. It should be noted that chafing dish 10 sizes are somewhatuniform in the industry, thus a single frame 20 can accommodate a numberof distinct manufacturer's chafing dishes 10. Further the example showsa rectangular chafing dish 10, but the frame 20 can be implemented withround dishes 10, which are common for serving soups, for example. Anydesired shape is possible.

Further a conventional assembly often accommodates two separate ½ sizechafing dishes 10 or three ⅓ size chafing dishes 10, which are oftenused for offering two or three separate but related dishes (e.g. two orthree different types of vegetable, or potatoes). The full size frame 20could accommodate two ½ size dishes or three ⅓ size dishes, as should beappreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art, however thisunnecessarily ties the dishes 10 together. Separate frames 20 could beshaped for the ½ and ⅓ sized dishes with the handles 22 placed (on thelong side of the assembly) so as not to interfere with adjacent dishes10.

Color-coded handles 22 could be used to aid in the identification offood in each chafing dish 10. Prior art chafing dishes offer no suchidentification. Thus while using color-coded handles 22, interpretingquickly what food is in which chafing dish and how long the food needsto be in the oven, minimizes the constant or prolonged time that theoven must be open to determine such criteria and minimizes the loss ofheat from the oven.

The chafing dish 10 of the present invention with frame 20 and handles22 solves the difficulties inherent in prior art chafing dishes byproviding a chafing dish 10 which can easily be removed from a water panof a chafing dish assembly, keeping hands clear of hot rising steam andwhich provides a significant seal between the chafing dish 10 and thewater pan, and allowing a lid to be placed on top. The handles 22 of thepresent invention provides for conventional stacking storage. Thechafing dish 10 allows a safe, efficient and professional-appearingexchange and serving of food, keeping hands clear of dangerously hotrising steam. It is one advantage that the chafing dish 10 of thepresent invention reduces the stress in an already stressful occupation.The handles 22 make preparing, exchanging and the overall handling offood safer than conventional prior art chafing dishes. Food servers needonly someone to remove the empty chafing dish 10 while they replace itwith the full chafing dish 10 of food. Even while using pot holders, afirm grip can be had easily, quickly, simply and safely.

FIGS. 7A-C illustrate an embodiment of the chafing dish handle 20 whichis designed for attachment to a disposable aluminum chafing dish 10shown in FIGS. 7B and C. As discussed above, with the handle 20 coupledto the dish 10 the associated handles 22 are configured to provide asafe exchange and serving of food by keeping the servers hands away fromthe outer edge 12 (also called the sealing flange or ledge) of thedisposable aluminum chafing dish 10 where hot steam rises from the waterpan. The disposable aluminum chafing dish 10 is shaped as describedabove and includes the similar bottom panel and side walls extendingupwardly there from defining a top opening, a top sealing flange ledge12 extends outwardly from the side walls around the entire periphery ofthe walls. This embodiment of the present invention also includes aclosed loop frame 20 including rail members that are configured to alignwith and to be positioned beneath the chafing dish ledge 12, andincluding handle members 22 extending from the rail members on opposedsides of the frame 20 and configured to extend in a manner that does noteffect the lid placement or the nesting of chafing dishes 10 in storage,the frame 20 additionally includes a frame attachment member 24″ tosecure the frame 20 and associated handles 22 to the chafing dish 10. Asshown, in this embodiment the attachment member 24″ is formation of theside rails sufficient such that the roll over edge of the aluminum pan10 are wrapped around these side rails. It is possible to tack weld thishandle 20 in place. Unlike the earlier designs this design is intendedto be coupled by the manufacturer and typically discarded with thedisposable aluminum pan. Thus this embodiment does not need to bereattached to distinct pans.

FIGS. 8A-C illustrate a further expansion of the handle concept of thepresent invention and these illustrate a chafing dish handle-supportingframe 20′ according to a different embodiment of the invention whereinthe handle is designed as a frame to support an associated chafing dish10. This embodiment of the present invention also includes a closed loopframe 20′ including rail members that are configured to align with andto be positioned beneath the chafing dish ledge 12, and including handlemembers 22 extending from the rail members on opposed sides of the frame20′. The frame 20′ additionally includes frame legs 24′″ configured tosupport the frame 20′ and any associated chafing dish 10. The frame legscan be viewed as coupling the handle-frame 20′ to the dish 10 analogousto the members 24 above, but they do not secure the handle frame 20′thereto.

It will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that variousmodifications may be made to the present invention without departingfrom the spirit and scope thereof. For example the handles of FIGS. 1-6could also be tack welded in place if movement between dishes 10 is nolonger desired, however the above described releasable attachment ispreferred for the advantages noted. The present invention is bestdefined by the appended claims and equivalents thereto.

What is claimed is:
 1. A disposable chafing dish configured to provide asafe exchange and serving of food by keeping the servers hands away fromthe outer edge of the chafing dish where hot steam rises from the waterpan, the disposable chafing dish comprising: a chafing dish having abottom panel and side walls extending upwardly there from defining a topopening, a top sealing flange ledge extends outwardly from the sidewalls around the entire periphery of the walls; and a closed loop frameincluding rail members that are configured to align with and to bepositioned beneath the chafing dish ledge, wherein portions of the ledgeare wrapped around the rail members, the closed loop frame includinghandle members extending from the rail members on opposed sides of theframe and configured to extend in a manner that does not prevent the lidplacement or the nesting of chafing dishes in storage.
 2. The disposablechafing dish of claim 1 wherein the frame is formed of round metalstock.
 3. The disposable chafing dish of claim 2 wherein the frame isformed of from ⅛-¼ inch stainless steel rods.
 4. The disposable chafingdish of claim 1 wherein the handle members are angled upward relative tothe frame.
 5. The disposable chafing dish of claim 1 wherein the handlemembers are extending generally parallel relative to the frame.
 6. Thedisposable chafing dish of claim 1 wherein the handle members are colorcoded.
 7. The disposable chafing dish of claim 1 wherein the frame issubstantially rectangular in plan view.
 8. The disposable chafing dishof claim 1 wherein the handle members are coated with an insulatinggrip-able, oven-safe material.
 9. The disposable chafing dish of claim 1wherein chafing dish is formed of aluminum.
 10. The disposable chafingdish of claim 1 wherein the frame includes frame legs configured tosupport the frame and the disposable chafing dish.
 11. A chafing dishhandle for a chafing dish comprising: a closed loop frame including apair of spaced rail members that are each configured to align with andto be positioned beneath a chafing dish ledge, wherein the rail membersare configured to have the ledge wrapped around at least portionsthereof to secure the frame to the chafing dish; and handle membersextending from the rail members on opposed sides of the frame andconfigured to extend from the frame in a manner that does not preventthe lid placement or the nesting of chafing dishes in storage.
 12. Thechafing dish handle of claim 11 wherein the frame is formed of roundmetal stock.
 13. The chafing dish handle of claim 12 wherein the frameis formed of from ⅛-¼ inch stainless steel rods.
 14. The chafing dishhandle of claim 12 wherein the handle members are angled upward relativeto the frame.
 15. The chafing dish handle of claim 12 wherein the handlemembers are extending generally parallel relative to the frame.
 16. Thechafing dish handle of claim 11 wherein the handle members are colorcoded.
 17. The chafing dish handle of claim 11 wherein the frame issubstantially rectangular in plan view.
 18. The chafing dish handle ofclaim wherein the frame includes frame legs configured to support theframe and the disposable chafing dish.
 19. The chafing dish handle ofclaim 11 wherein the handle members are angled upward relative to theframe.
 20. The chafing dish handle of claim 11 wherein the handlemembers are extending generally parallel relative to rail members of theframe.